Having been in the garden business (academic, commercial, and nonprofit) for over four decades, I’ve had the great privilege to learn from, share with, and debate an awful lot of smart and experienced gardeners. But there’s a new force on the lecture circuit so I decided to pull on my John Henry of Horticulture hat and go toe-to-toe with an artificial intelligence service to see what would happen.

The set up.

I asked my new AI colleague (I’ll call him Bob) to answer a few common garden questions. And I followed up his response with a few of my own thoughts.

Paul Cappiello: What got you interested in gardening?

Frank McFall, garden manager for the Limerick Neighborhood Association, works on the garden in the neighborhood. Tuesday, July 22, 2025

Bob: “That’s a lovely question — and one that often gets to the heart of why people stay in this field.

For me, the spark came from spending time outdoors as a kid. I remember being fascinated by how something as small as a seed could turn into a towering sunflower, or how a bare patch of ground could suddenly be alive with blooms and insects. Later, mentors — whether a grandparent with a vegetable patch, a teacher pointing out wildflowers, or an early boss in a nursery — showed me that gardening isn’t just about plants, it’s about care, patience, and connection to place.

Over time, that curiosity deepened into a professional interest, because gardening sits at the intersection of so many things I care about: ecology, design, science, and human well-being.”

Evaluation: Hard to argue with this one. In fact, I think Bob should teach an intro gardening course for young kids. He sounds like someone I’d love to tag along with on a walk in the woods or garden. Score one for Bob.

PC: What is your position on the use of native plants in the landscape?

Bob: “That’s a thoughtful question, and one I get quite often.

My position is that native plants are a tremendously valuable tool in the landscape, but they’re not the only tool. Here’s why:

Ecological benefits: Native plants support pollinators, birds, and other wildlife in ways that many non-natives cannot. Their deep relationships with local ecosystems make them irreplaceable in sustaining biodiversity.
Adaptation and resilience: Many natives are well-adapted to local soils, climate, and weather patterns, which can mean less irrigation, less fertilizer, and less pest pressure if sited correctly.
Design considerations: The reality is that some landscapes call for certain colors, forms, or year-round structure that may not always be provided by the local native palette. In those cases, I think it’s perfectly appropriate to blend carefully chosen non-invasive exotics with natives to achieve both ecological function and design goals.

So, in short: I strongly advocate for natives as a foundation, but I see the best landscapes as diverse, intentional, and site-specific, rather than strictly native-only.

Evaluation: Ok. Pretty main line response here. Nothing earth shattering. But I will take issue with the “Adaptation and resilience” part of the answer. Natives may be well adapted to local soils, but rarely are we planting into undisturbed native soils. Sometimes an exotic will perform better than many natives in highly disturbed soils. Natives do not necessarily require less fertilizer or irrigation than exotics. That’s a long-debunked factoid. But I do like the “diverse, intentional, and site specific” bit and agree with that wholeheartedly.

PC: What are the top three ferns you would recommend for a beginning gardener in Kentucky?

'Wildwood Twist' Japanese Painted Fern is an excellent choice for brightening up a dark corner of the garden

Bob: “My top three would be:

Christmas Fern (Polystichum acrostichoides)

Native, evergreen, tough as nails.
Handles Kentucky’s woodland soils well, tolerates a range of moisture, and gives year-round texture.

Lady Fern (Athyrium filix-femina)

Easy to divide and spread around the garden, so it’s a good “confidence-builder” plant.

Japanese Painted Fern (Athyrium nipponicum ‘Pictum’)

Technically not native, but widely grown and beloved for its silver, purple, and green fronds.
Adds drama to shady spots and is still low-maintenance.”

Evaluation: Well done, Bob. I’d add Dixie Wood fern (Dryopteris xaustralis) as probably the very best fern for Kentucky but nice list. And by the way, kudos for your proper use of italics with Latinized names!

PC: Can you tell me how to prune my hydrangea?

Bob: “Great question — hydrangea pruning is one of those topics that causes a lot of confusion, because different types bloom on different wood.

The first step is figuring out which kind of hydrangea you have:

Bigleaf hydrangea (Hydrangea macrophylla): These bloom on old wood (last year’s stems). If you cut them back hard in winter or early spring, you’ll lose your flower buds. For these, prune right after flowering.
Smooth hydrangea (Hydrangea arborescens, like ‘Annabelle’): These bloom on new wood. You can cut them back quite hard in late winter or very early spring, and they’ll push up fresh growth that flowers the same season.
Panicle hydrangea (Hydrangea paniculata, like ‘Limelight’): These also bloom on new wood. You can prune them back in late winter/early spring without fear of losing flowers.
Oakleaf hydrangea (Hydrangea quercifolia): Like bigleafs, they bloom on old wood. Best to prune right after they flower.”

Evaluation: Spot on, Bob. In fact a couple of parts look astonishingly similar (identical?) to something I’ve written in the past ... but that’s another topic for another time.

PC: Finally, are plants sold under a national brand worth the higher price?

Yew Dell Botanical Gardens Executive Director Paul Cappiello says in order to do a quality job of pruning a tree or shrub, you need to know what the plant is genetically programmed to do as it grows

Bob: "That’s a sharp, practical question — one that often stirs debate when gardeners compare a $30 branded shrub to a $15 no-name one at the local garden center. Sometimes the extra price is justified, sometimes it’s really just marketing.

Why national-brand plants can be worth it:

Proven performance: Brands like Proven Winners or Monrovia usually trial their plants extensively before release.
Uniform quality: National brands tend to have stricter quality controls, so you’re less likely to buy a weak or mislabeled plant.
Unique genetics: Branded plants often come from proprietary breeding programs. If you want that specific hydrangea or dwarf coneflower, you may only find it under that brand.

Why the higher price may not be necessary:

Local adaptation: Sometimes a plant grown by a small local nursery (unbranded) will actually perform better, since it’s been propagated and grown under your region’s conditions.
Basic species: If you just want a straight species oak, lilac, or echinacea, there’s no real reason to pay double for a branded pot.
Marketing markup: You’re partly paying for the pretty pot, the tag, and the advertising.

Evaluation: Ouch! Generally Bob is on track but for a few doozies:

“Uniform quality:" Yowza! A poor grower will grow a poor plant no matter the genetics or marketing. Good growers grow good plants regardless of genetics.
“Local Adaptation:" Nope. This is a particularly bad faux pas. A plant’s genetics determine its adaptability. Where the plant is grown is irrelevant.
And rarely is the difference between a branded and unbranded plant a factor of two.

Overall score for our friend and colleague, Bob? I’d say B-. Some excellent points, and maybe he’s a good place to start when you’re looking for answers. But he does perpetuate some old and outdated tropes. Shame on Bob! As with so many things in life, best not to rely solely on Bob.

Paul Cappiello is the executive director at Yew Dell Botanical Gardens, 6220 Old Lagrange Road, yewdellgardens.org.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: We asked an AI bot 5 common gardening questions. Here's how many answers it got correct